Belarus 1-2 Netherlands: 5 Talking Points from the game | UEFA Euro 2020 Qualifiers

#3 Belarus unsettled Netherlands with their counter-attacking tactics

Igor Kriushenko set his team out to play on the counter

The hosts always knew that the odds were against them going into the game. The Netherlands was a team laden with stars and the quality of the players in their disposal made it a difficult task for the home side. As such, Igor Kriushenko opted for counter-attacking measures to catch the opposition on the break. And it almost worked out for his team.

Belarus saw very little of the ball in the first half; they managed just 17% possession and only registered 95 passes, with a mere 64% accuracy. The home side recorded only 3 shots before the break, none of which was on target. However, since the Netherlands played with a high line, every time Belarus won the ball, the hosts managed to break away with speed, causing the visitors quite a few headaches.

The intensity of their counter-attacks increased in the second half and they even managed to score a goal, when a direct ball from deep was misread by Virgil van Dijk and turned in by Stanislaw Drahun past Jasper Cillessen. Belarus continued to stretch the opposition defence with their counter-attacking tactics in the second half, but the equalizer eluded them in the end.